CN113165753B

CN113165753B - Unmanned aerial vehicle system, unmanned aerial vehicle, mobile body, control method for unmanned aerial vehicle system, and computer-readable storage medium

Info

Publication number: CN113165753B
Application number: CN201980079053.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 和气千大; 柳下洋
Original assignee: Nileworks Inc
Current assignee: Nileworks Inc
Priority date: 2018-12-05
Filing date: 2019-12-02
Publication date: 2024-03-26
Anticipated expiration: 2039-12-02
Also published as: US20220024580A1; JPWO2020116392A1; CN113165753A; WO2020116392A1; JP7157478B2

Abstract

The unmanned aerial vehicle and the mobile body which can be loaded with the unmanned aerial vehicle to move and can be taken off and land by the unmanned aerial vehicle act cooperatively, and high safety can be maintained even when the unmanned aerial vehicle flies independently. In an unmanned aerial vehicle system (500), an unmanned aerial vehicle (100) and a mobile body (406 a) act in coordination, the mobile body can load the unmanned aerial vehicle to move and can take off and land for the unmanned aerial vehicle, and the unmanned aerial vehicle is provided with: a flight control unit (21) that controls the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle; and an unmanned aerial vehicle transmitting unit (40) that transmits information that can distinguish whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight, the mobile unit comprising: a departure arrival area (82) for loading the unmanned aerial vehicle and forming a departure arrival point (406) where the unmanned aerial vehicle takes off and lands; a movement control unit (30) that causes the unmanned aerial vehicle to be mounted in the departure/arrival area and causes the mobile body to move together with the unmanned aerial vehicle; a mobile body receiving unit (60) that receives information from the unmanned aerial vehicle; and a display unit (65) for displaying information based on the information received from the unmanned aerial vehicle, wherein when the mobile body receiving unit receives the information indicating that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight, at least one of the operation restriction of the mobile body and the display of the display unit is made different from that when the unmanned aerial vehicle is not in flight.

Description

Unmanned aerial vehicle system, unmanned aerial vehicle, mobile body, control method for unmanned aerial vehicle system, and computer-readable storage medium

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an unmanned aerial vehicle system, an unmanned aerial vehicle, a mobile body, a control method for an unmanned aerial vehicle system, and an unmanned aerial vehicle system control program.

Background

Applications of small helicopters (multi-rotor helicopters), commonly referred to as unmanned planes, are advancing. One of the important application fields is to apply a chemical such as a pesticide or a liquid fertilizer to a farmland (farm) (for example, patent document 1). In a narrow farmland, there are many cases where it is not suitable to use a manned plane or helicopter but it is suitable to use an unmanned plane.

The absolute position of the unmanned aerial vehicle can be accurately known in cm units in flight by using technologies such as a quasi zenith satellite system or an RTK-GPS (Real Time Kinematic-Global Positioning System), so that the unmanned aerial vehicle can fly autonomously with minimum manipulation by a human hand even in a farmland with a typical narrow and complicated terrain in japan, and can perform drug scattering efficiently and accurately.

On the other hand, in an autonomous flying unmanned aerial vehicle for agricultural chemical sowing, it is difficult to say that safety is sufficiently considered. Since the weight of the unmanned aerial vehicle loaded with the medicine is several tens of kilograms, serious consequences may be caused in the case of accidents such as falling onto a person. In addition, since the operator of the unmanned aerial vehicle is not a professional, a mechanism for preventing erroneous operation is generally required, but consideration thereof is also insufficient. Heretofore, there is a safety technology of an unmanned aerial vehicle based on human handling (for example, patent document 2), but there is no technology for an autonomous flying unmanned aerial vehicle for coping with, in particular, agricultural-oriented drug sowing.

When the unmanned aerial vehicle flies on the farm, it is necessary to transport the mobile body to a predetermined position around the farm. In addition, when the unmanned aerial vehicle arrives at a predetermined position, an unmanned aerial vehicle system is required in which the unmanned aerial vehicle and the mobile unit transmit and receive information to and from each other in coordination with each other.

Prior art literature

Patent literature

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2001-120151

Patent document 2: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2017-163265

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

Provided is an unmanned aerial vehicle system wherein an unmanned aerial vehicle and a mobile body capable of loading the unmanned aerial vehicle to move and for the unmanned aerial vehicle to take off and land are coordinated to operate, and high safety is maintained even when the unmanned aerial vehicle is flown autonomously.

Means for solving the problems

In order to achieve the above object, an aspect of the present invention relates to an unmanned aerial vehicle system in which an unmanned aerial vehicle and a mobile body are operated in coordination, the mobile body being capable of loading the unmanned aerial vehicle to move and landing the unmanned aerial vehicle, the unmanned aerial vehicle comprising: a flight control unit that controls the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle; and an unmanned aerial vehicle transmitting unit configured to transmit information capable of distinguishing whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight, the mobile unit including: the departure arrival area is used for loading the unmanned aerial vehicle and is used as a departure arrival place for the unmanned aerial vehicle to take off and land; a movement control unit that causes the unmanned aerial vehicle to be mounted in the departure/arrival area and causes the mobile body to move together with the unmanned aerial vehicle; a mobile body receiving unit that receives information from the unmanned aerial vehicle; and a display unit that displays information based on the information received from the unmanned aerial vehicle, wherein when the mobile body reception unit receives the information indicating that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight, at least one of the operation restriction of the mobile body and the display by the display unit is made different from when the unmanned aerial vehicle is not in flight.

When the mobile object receiving unit receives information indicating that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight, the mobile object receiving unit may restrict the operation of the mobile object when it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight.

The display of the display unit may be different from the case where the mobile receiving unit receives information indicating that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight and the case where the mobile receiving unit receives information indicating that the unmanned aerial vehicle is not in flight.

The mobile unit may further include a form switching mechanism that can switch at least a form in which the mobile unit is movable and a form in which the unmanned aerial vehicle can take off and land on the mobile unit, and when the mobile unit receiving information indicating that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight, the mobile unit may be held in a form in which the unmanned aerial vehicle can take off and land.

The moving body may further include a form acquiring unit configured to acquire a form of the moving body.

The mobile unit may further include a mobile unit transmitting unit capable of transmitting the form of the mobile unit to the unmanned aerial vehicle, and the unmanned aerial vehicle may determine a position at which the unmanned aerial vehicle is landed based on the form of the mobile unit.

The unmanned aerial vehicle system may direct the mobile body to a location where the unmanned aerial vehicle can take off and land.

The flight control unit may determine whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle can land at the departure arrival point based on the information of the mobile body received by the unmanned aerial vehicle.

The mobile body may have a surrounding environment acquiring unit that acquires information on a surrounding environment of the departure/arrival point, and the mobile body may be configured to transmit the information on the surrounding environment to the unmanned aerial vehicle, and the unmanned aerial vehicle may determine whether or not to land on the departure/arrival point based on the information on the surrounding environment.

The flight control unit may acquire the position of the mobile body, and determine whether or not landing at the departure arrival point is possible based on the position of the mobile body.

When it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle cannot land at the departure/arrival point, the flight control unit may land the unmanned aerial vehicle on a ground corresponding to a point at which the unmanned aerial vehicle takes off.

When it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle cannot land at the departure/arrival point, the flight control unit may land the unmanned aerial vehicle in a target area where the unmanned aerial vehicle operates.

The flight control unit may suspend the unmanned aerial vehicle from the predetermined location by suspending the unmanned aerial vehicle from the predetermined location when it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle cannot land at the departure arrival location.

The moving body may further include: a movement detection unit that detects whether or not the mobile body has moved during the flight of the unmanned plane; and an intervention operation unit configured to transmit an instruction to the unmanned aerial vehicle to instruct the unmanned aerial vehicle to perform a backoff operation, wherein the intervention operation unit transmits the instruction to the unmanned aerial vehicle to instruct the unmanned aerial vehicle to perform the backoff operation when the movement detection unit detects the movement of the moving body.

The intervention operation unit may generate a travel route of the unmanned aerial vehicle from a predetermined position in a target area where the unmanned aerial vehicle performs work to the departure arrival point, and transmit the travel route to the unmanned aerial vehicle.

The mobile unit may acquire a remaining amount of a battery mounted on the unmanned aerial vehicle, predict a flying range of the unmanned aerial vehicle based on the remaining amount of the battery, and limit a movement range of the mobile unit based on the flying range.

The unmanned aerial vehicle system may include a back display unit that is provided on a back side of a vehicle body or a rear side of the vehicle body or a side surface of the vehicle body that covers a passenger seat of the mobile body, and displays that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in operation.

The unmanned aerial vehicle system may include an upper display unit provided on an upper portion of the vehicle body of the mobile body, and configured to display that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in operation on a front side and a rear side of the vehicle body.

In order to achieve the above object, another aspect of the present invention relates to a control method of an unmanned aerial vehicle system in which an unmanned aerial vehicle and a mobile body are operated in coordination, the mobile body being capable of loading the unmanned aerial vehicle and moving and landing the unmanned aerial vehicle, the mobile body having a departure arrival area for loading the unmanned aerial vehicle and serving as a departure arrival point at which the unmanned aerial vehicle takes off and lands, the control method of the unmanned aerial vehicle system comprising: controlling the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle; a step of transmitting information capable of distinguishing whether the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight; loading the unmanned aerial vehicle in the departure arrival area, and moving the mobile body together with the unmanned aerial vehicle; a step of receiving information from the unmanned aerial vehicle; a step of displaying information based on information received from the unmanned aerial vehicle; and a step of, when information indicating that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight is received by the step of receiving information from the unmanned aerial vehicle, making at least any one of an operation restriction of the mobile body and a display of the information different from that in a case where the unmanned aerial vehicle is not in flight.

In order to achieve the above object, another aspect of the present invention relates to a control program for an unmanned aerial vehicle system in which an unmanned aerial vehicle and a mobile body are operated in coordination, the mobile body being capable of loading the unmanned aerial vehicle and being capable of taking off and landing the unmanned aerial vehicle, the mobile body having a departure arrival area for loading the unmanned aerial vehicle and being a departure arrival point at which the unmanned aerial vehicle takes off and lands, the control program for the unmanned aerial vehicle system causing a computer to execute: a command to control the flight of the drone; transmitting a command capable of distinguishing information whether the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight; a command to load the unmanned aerial vehicle in the departure arrival area and to move the mobile body together with the unmanned aerial vehicle; receiving a command of information from the unmanned aerial vehicle; a command to display information based on information received from the drone; and in a case where information indicating that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight is received based on a command to receive information from the unmanned aerial vehicle, causing at least any one of an action restriction of the mobile body and a display of the information to be different from a case where the unmanned aerial vehicle is not in flight.

In order to achieve the above object, another aspect of the present invention relates to a mobile unit capable of moving a loading unmanned aerial vehicle and landing the loading unmanned aerial vehicle, comprising: the departure arrival area is used for loading the unmanned aerial vehicle and is used as a departure arrival place for the unmanned aerial vehicle to take off and land; a movement control unit that moves the mobile body together with the unmanned aerial vehicle; a mobile body receiving unit that receives information from the unmanned aerial vehicle; and a display unit that displays information based on the information received from the unmanned aerial vehicle, wherein when the mobile body reception unit receives the information indicating that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight, at least one of the operation restriction of the mobile body and the display by the display unit is made different from when the unmanned aerial vehicle is not in flight.

In order to achieve the above object, another aspect of the present invention relates to an unmanned aerial vehicle that is mounted on a moving body and moves together with the moving body, the unmanned aerial vehicle including: a flight control unit that controls the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle; and an unmanned aerial vehicle transmitting unit configured to transmit information capable of distinguishing whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight, the mobile unit including: the departure arrival area is used for loading the unmanned aerial vehicle and is used as a departure arrival place for the unmanned aerial vehicle to take off and land; a movement control unit that causes the unmanned aerial vehicle to be mounted in the departure/arrival area and causes the mobile body to move together with the unmanned aerial vehicle; a mobile body receiving unit that receives information from the unmanned aerial vehicle; and a display unit that displays information based on the information received from the unmanned aerial vehicle, wherein when the mobile body reception unit receives the information indicating that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight, at least one of the operation restriction of the mobile body and the display by the display unit is made different from when the unmanned aerial vehicle is not in flight.

Effects of the invention

The unmanned aerial vehicle and the mobile body capable of loading the unmanned aerial vehicle to move and allowing the unmanned aerial vehicle to take off and land act cooperatively, so that high safety can be maintained even in autonomous flight.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a plan view showing a first embodiment of a unmanned aerial vehicle system according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a front view of the unmanned aerial vehicle included in the unmanned aerial vehicle system.

Fig. 3 is a right side view of the above-described drone.

Fig. 4 is a rear view of the drone described above.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the unmanned aerial vehicle.

Fig. 6 is a conceptual diagram of the entire drug dispensing system of the unmanned aerial vehicle.

Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram characterizing the control functions of the above-described drone system.

Fig. 8 is a schematic perspective view showing a state in which the unmanned aerial vehicle is mounted on the mobile unit of the present invention.

Fig. 9 is a schematic perspective view showing a state in which the upper panel on which the unmanned aerial vehicle is mounted is slid rearward in a state in which the unmanned aerial vehicle is mounted on the mobile unit.

Fig. 10 is a functional block diagram of the unmanned aerial vehicle and the mobile unit relating to an operation of transmitting information from the mobile unit and receiving information by the unmanned aerial vehicle.

Fig. 11 is a functional block diagram of the unmanned aerial vehicle and the mobile unit relating to an operation of transmitting information from the unmanned aerial vehicle and receiving information by the mobile unit.

Fig. 12 is a flowchart showing a flow of landing the unmanned aerial vehicle at a departure/arrival point on the mobile body.

Fig. 13 is a flowchart for securing the amount of resources owned by the mobile unit based on the upper side from the unmanned aerial vehicle.

Fig. 14 is a flowchart when an abnormality is detected in the unmanned aerial vehicle.

Fig. 15 is a flowchart when an abnormality is detected in the moving body.

Fig. 16 is a conceptual diagram showing the entire state of the mobile body and the unmanned plane according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 17 is a conceptual diagram showing the entire state of the mobile body and the unmanned aerial vehicle according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 18 is a conceptual diagram showing the entire state of the mobile body and the unmanned plane according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 19 is a conceptual diagram showing the entire state of the mobile body and the unmanned plane according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 20 is a conceptual diagram showing the entire state of the mobile body and the unmanned plane according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 21 is a conceptual diagram showing the entire state of the moving object and the unmanned plane according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 22 is a conceptual diagram showing the entire state of the mobile body and the unmanned aerial vehicle according to the eighth embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 23 is a conceptual diagram showing a moving object and the unmanned plane according to the ninth embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 24 is a conceptual diagram showing the entire state of the mobile body and the unmanned plane according to the tenth embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 25 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an eleventh embodiment of the drug dispensing system of the unmanned aerial vehicle.

Fig. 26 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the entirety of a twelfth embodiment of the drug dispensing system of the unmanned aerial vehicle.

Fig. 27 is a perspective view (a) and a longitudinal sectional view (b) of a foot receiving portion provided in the mobile body according to the present invention.

Fig. 28 is a perspective view of the moving body according to the first embodiment of the present invention, from another angle, in the state of fig. 9. The structure of the upper panel of the movable body is omitted as appropriate.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, modes for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The drawings are all illustrative. In the following detailed description, for purposes of explanation, specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the disclosed embodiments. However, embodiments are not limited to these specific details. In addition, well-known constructions and devices are schematically shown for the sake of simplifying the drawings.

First, a configuration of the unmanned aerial vehicle included in the unmanned aerial vehicle system of the present invention will be described. In the present specification, unmanned aerial vehicles refer to all of the aircraft having a plurality of rotor wings regardless of power units (electric power, prime movers, and the like), steering modes (whether wireless or wired, and autonomous flight type or manual steering type, and the like).

As shown in fig. 1 to 5, the rotary wings 101-1a, 101-1b, 101-2a, 101-2b, 101-3a, 101-3b, 101-4a, and 101-4b (also referred to as rotors) are means for flying the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, and 8 rotary wings (4 sets of rotary wings of 2-stage configuration) are provided in consideration of balance of flying stability, body size, and power consumption. Each rotary wing 101 is disposed in the four directions of the main body 110 by an arm extending from the main body 110 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. That is, the rotary wings 101-1a and 101-1b are disposed at the left rear side, the rotary wings 101-2a and 101-2b are disposed at the left front side, the rotary wings 101-3a and 101-3b are disposed at the right rear side, and the rotary wings 101-4a and 101-4b are disposed at the right front side, respectively, in the traveling direction. In the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, a direction toward the lower side of the paper surface in fig. 1 is set as a traveling direction. Rod-shaped legs 107-1, 107-2, 107-3, 107-4 extend downward from the rotation axis of the rotation wing 101.

The motors 102-1a, 102-1b, 102-2a, 102-2b, 102-3a, 102-3b, 102-4a, 102-4b are means (typically, motors, but may be engines or the like) for rotating the rotary wings 101-1a, 101-1b, 101-2a, 101-2b, 101-3a, 101-3b, 101-4a, 101-4b, and 1 is provided for one rotary wing. The motor 102 is an example of a propeller. For stability of flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle, etc., the axes of the upper and lower rotary wings (e.g., 101-1a and 101-1 b) within 1 set and the motors (e.g., 102-1a and 102-1 b) corresponding thereto are located on the same straight line and rotate in opposite directions to each other. As shown in fig. 2 and 3, the radial member for supporting the propeller guard provided so that the rotor does not interfere with foreign matter is not a horizontal but a tower-like structure. This is to promote buckling of the member to the outside of the rotor blade at the time of collision, and prevent interference with the rotor.

The medicine nozzles 103-1, 103-2, 103-3, and 103-4 are means for dispensing medicines downward, and each of the medicine nozzles has 4 medicine nozzles. In the present specification, the term "chemical" generally refers to a liquid or powder for agricultural chemical, herbicide, liquid fertilizer, insecticide, seed, water, etc. to be spread on a farm.

The medicine tank 104 is a tank for storing the medicine to be spread, and is provided at a position close to the center of gravity of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 and at a position lower than the center of gravity from the viewpoint of weight balance. The medicine hoses 105-1, 105-2, 105-3, and 105-4 are units for connecting the medicine tank 104 to the medicine nozzles 103-1, 103-2, 103-3, and 103-4, and may be made of a hard material, or may also have the function of supporting the medicine nozzles. The pump 106 is a unit for ejecting the medicine from the nozzle.

Fig. 6 is a conceptual diagram of the whole system of an example of the application of the drug scattering using the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 according to the present invention. The figure is a schematic diagram, and the scale is inaccurate. In the same figure, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, the manipulator 401, and the base station 404 are connected to the agricultural operation cloud 405, respectively. Further, the small portable terminal 401a is connected to the base station 404. These connections may be wireless communications by Wi-Fi, a mobile communication system, or the like, or may be partially or entirely wired.

The operator 401 is a unit for transmitting an instruction to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 by an operation of the user 402 and displaying information (for example, a position, a medicine amount, a remaining battery amount, a camera image, etc.) received from the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, and can be implemented by a portable information device such as a general tablet terminal running a computer program. The unmanned aerial vehicle 100 according to the present invention is controlled to fly autonomously, but may be manually operated during basic operations such as take-off and return, and during emergency. In addition to the portable information device, an emergency operation device (not shown) having a function dedicated to emergency stop may be used (the emergency operation device may be a dedicated device including a large emergency stop button or the like so that a response can be quickly taken in an emergency). Further, a small portable terminal 401a, such as a smart phone, which can display a part or all of the information displayed in the operator 401, may be included in the system, separately from the operator 401. In addition, the following functions may be provided: the operation of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is changed based on the information input from the small-sized portable terminal 401 a. The small portable terminal 401a can be connected to the base station 404 and receive information from the agricultural operation cloud 405 via the base station 404, for example.

Farm 403 is a farm, a field, or the like, to which the chemical of unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is to be spread. In practice, the topography of the farm 403 is complicated, and a topography map cannot be obtained in advance, or a topography map may be different from a situation on site. Typically, farm 403 is adjacent to a house, hospital, school, other crop farm, road, railroad, or the like. In addition, there are also some cases where there is an obstacle such as a building or an electric wire in the farm 403.

The base station 404 may function as an RTK-GPS base station or may function as a device providing a master function of Wi-Fi communication, and may provide an accurate position of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 (the device having a master function of Wi-Fi communication independent of the RTK-GPS base station). The base station 404 may communicate with the agricultural operation cloud 405 using a mobile communication system such as 3G, 4G, and LTE. In the present embodiment, the base station 404 is mounted on a mobile unit 406a together with a departure/arrival point 406.

Agricultural operations cloud 405 is a set of computers and associated software typically operating on cloud services, and can be wirelessly connected to operator 401 via a mobile phone line or the like. The agricultural management cloud 405 may perform processing for analyzing an image of the farm 403 photographed by the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 and grasping the growth condition of crops to determine a flight path. Further, the stored topography information of the farm 403 and the like may be provided to the unmanned plane 100. Further, the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 and the history of the captured images may be accumulated and various analysis processes may be performed.

In general, the drone 100 takes off from a departure arrival point 406 located outside the farm 403, and returns to the departure arrival point 406 after the farm 403 is sprayed with a chemical, or when replenishment of a chemical, charging, or the like is required. The flight path (entry path) from the departure/arrival point 406 to the destination farm 403 may be stored in advance by the agricultural management cloud 405 or the like, or may be input by the user 402 before the start of departure.

As in the eleventh embodiment shown in fig. 25, the drug dispensing system of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 according to the present invention may be configured such that the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, the manipulator 401, the small mobile terminal 401a, and the agricultural management cloud 405 are connected to the base station 404.

As in the twelfth embodiment shown in fig. 26, the drug dispensing system of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 according to the present invention may be configured such that the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, the manipulator 401, and the small mobile terminal 401a are connected to the base station 404, respectively, and only the manipulator 401 is connected to the agricultural management cloud 405.

Fig. 7 is a block diagram showing control functions of an embodiment of the drug dispensing unmanned aerial vehicle according to the present invention. The flight controller 501 is a component responsible for controlling the entire unmanned aerial vehicle, and may specifically be an embedded computer including a CPU, a memory, related software, and the like. The flight controller 501 controls the rotational speeds of the motors 102-1a, 102-1b, 102-2a, 102-2b, 102-3a, 102-3b, 104-a, 104-b by a control unit such as an ESC (Electronic Speed Control) based on input information received from the manipulator 401 and input information obtained from various sensors described later, thereby controlling the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The actual rotational speeds of the motors 102-1a, 102-1b, 102-2a, 102-2b, 102-3a, 102-3b, 104-a, 104-b are fed back to the flight controller 501 and can be monitored for normal rotation. Alternatively, an optical sensor or the like may be provided to the rotary wing 101, and the rotation of the rotary wing 101 may be fed back to the flight controller 501.

The software used by the flight controller 501 can be rewritten by a storage medium or the like or by a communication means such as Wi-Fi communication or USB for the purpose of function expansion, change, problem correction, and the like. In this case, protection by encryption, checksum, electronic signature, virus detection software, and the like is performed so as not to rewrite by unauthorized software. In addition, a part of the calculation processing used in the control by the flight controller 501 may be executed by another computer existing on the manipulator 401 or on the agricultural operation cloud 405 at another place. Since the flight controller 501 has high importance, some or all of its constituent elements may be duplicated.

The flight controller 501 can transmit and receive signals to and from the manipulator 401 via the Wi-Fi handset function 503, and further via the base station 404, receive a required instruction from the manipulator 401, and transmit required information to the manipulator 401. In this case, the communication can be encrypted, and thus, improper actions such as interception, impersonation, and theft of the device can be prevented. The base station 404 has the function of an RTK-GPS base station in addition to Wi-Fi based communication functions. By combining the signals of the RTK base station with the signals from the GPS positioning satellites, the absolute position of the drone 100 can be measured with accuracy of the order of a few centimeters by the flight controller 501. The flight controllers 501 are of high importance, and thus can be duplicated and multiplexed, and in order to cope with a failure of a specific GPS satellite, the redundant flight controllers 501 may be controlled to use other satellites.

The 6-axis gyro sensor 505 is a unit that measures acceleration in three directions orthogonal to each other of the unmanned aerial vehicle body (further, a unit that calculates a speed by integration of acceleration). The 6-axis gyro sensor 505 is a unit that measures angular velocity, which is a change in the attitude angle of the unmanned aerial vehicle body in the three directions. The geomagnetic sensor 506 is a unit that measures the direction of the unmanned aerial vehicle body by measurement of geomagnetism. The air pressure sensor 507 is a unit for measuring air pressure, and can also indirectly measure the height of the unmanned aerial vehicle. The laser sensor 508 is a unit for measuring the distance between the unmanned aerial vehicle body and the ground surface by using reflection of laser light, and may be IR (infrared) laser light. The sonar 509 is a means for measuring the distance between the unmanned aerial vehicle body and the ground surface by using reflection of an acoustic wave such as an ultrasonic wave. These sensor classes may be chosen based on the cost goals and performance requirements of the drone. A gyro sensor (angular velocity sensor) for measuring the inclination of the body, a wind sensor for measuring the wind force, and the like may be added. In addition, these sensors may be duplicated or multiplexed. In the case where there are multiple sensors for the same purpose, the flight controller 501 may use only one of them and switch to an alternative sensor for use when it fails. Alternatively, a plurality of sensors may be used simultaneously, and if the measurement results are not identical, it is considered that a failure has occurred.

The flow rate sensor 510 is a means for measuring the flow rate of the medicine, and is provided at a plurality of places along a path from the medicine tank 104 to the medicine nozzle 103. The insufficient liquid sensor 511 is a sensor that detects that the amount of the chemical is equal to or less than a predetermined amount. The multispectral camera 512 is a unit that photographs the farm 403 and acquires data for image analysis. The obstacle detection camera 513 is a camera for detecting an obstacle of the unmanned aerial vehicle, and is a device different from the multispectral camera 512 because of different image characteristics and orientations of lenses from the multispectral camera 512. The switch 514 is a means for performing various settings by the user 402 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The obstacle contact sensor 515 is a sensor for detecting that the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, in particular, the rotor and the propeller guard portion thereof, is in contact with an obstacle such as an electric wire, a building, a human body, a tree, a bird, or another unmanned aerial vehicle. The lid sensor 516 is a sensor that detects that the operation panel of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 or the lid for internal maintenance is in an open state. The medicine injection port sensor 517 is a sensor that detects that the injection port of the medicine tank 104 is in an open state. These sensors may be selected according to the cost target and performance requirements of the unmanned aerial vehicle, or may be doubled or multiplexed. Further, a sensor may be provided at a base station 404, an operator 401, or another location outside the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, and the read information may be transmitted to the unmanned aerial vehicle. For example, a wind sensor may be provided at the base station 404, and information about wind force/direction may be transmitted to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 via Wi-Fi communication.

The flight controller 501 generates a control signal to the pump 106, and adjusts the amount of the chemical discharged and stops the chemical discharge. Is configured to feed back the status (e.g., rotational speed, etc.) of the current point in time of the pump 106 to the flight controller 501.

The LED107 is a display unit for notifying the operator of the unmanned aerial vehicle of the status of the unmanned aerial vehicle. Instead of LEDs, or in addition to LEDs, display units such as liquid crystal displays may be used. The buzzer 518 is an output unit for informing the status of the unmanned aerial vehicle (particularly, an error status) by a sound signal. The Wi-Fi slave function 519 is an optional component for communicating with an external computer or the like for software transfer or the like, unlike the operator 401. Instead of or in addition to the Wi-Fi function, other wireless communication means such as infrared communication, bluetooth (registered trademark), zigBee (registered trademark), NFC, and the like, or wired communication means such as a USB connection may be used. In addition, the Wi-Fi handset functions can be replaced, and the communication can be performed by a mobile communication system such as 3G, 4G, LTE, and the like. The speaker 520 is an output unit for notifying the status (particularly, error status) of the unmanned aerial vehicle by recorded voice, synthesized voice, or the like. Depending on the weather conditions, it is sometimes difficult to see the visual display of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 in flight, and thus in such cases, the sound-based condition transfer is effective. The warning lamp 521 is a display unit such as a flash lamp for notifying the status (particularly, error status) of the unmanned aerial vehicle. These input/output units may be selected according to the cost target and performance requirements of the unmanned aerial vehicle, or may be doubled or multiplexed.

As shown in fig. 10, the unmanned aerial vehicle system 500 is generally configured by connecting the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 and the mobile object 406a via the network NW. The unmanned plane 100 and the mobile object 406a transmit and receive information to and from each other, and coordinate operations. The departure/arrival point 406 in fig. 6 is formed on the moving body 406 a. The unmanned aerial vehicle 100 includes a function unit for transmitting and receiving information to and from the mobile body 406a, in addition to the flight control unit 21 for controlling the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. Each functional unit of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is provided with, for example, a flight controller 501 shown in fig. 7. The unmanned aerial vehicle 100 and the mobile object 406a may be connected by a wire instead of the configuration of being connected via the network NW.

The unmanned aerial vehicle system 500 may include a mobile terminal such as a smart phone in addition to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 and the mobile unit 406 a. Information of the operation predicted for the travel of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, more specifically, information such as a predetermined time when the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 returns to the departure arrival point 406, the content of the job to be performed by the user 402 at the time of return, and the like is appropriately displayed on the display unit of the portable terminal. Further, the operations of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 and the mobile object 406a may be changed based on the input from the mobile terminal. The portable terminal can receive information from either the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 or the mobile unit 406 a. In addition, information from the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 may be transmitted to the portable terminal via the mobile body 406 a.

Construction of moving body

The mobile unit 406a shown in fig. 8 and 9 is a device that receives information of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 and appropriately notifies the user 402 or receives input from the user 402 and transmits the received input to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The mobile unit 406a can move with the loading unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The mobile body 406a can be autonomously moved in addition to being driven by the user 402. The moving body 406a in the present embodiment is assumed to be a vehicle such as an automobile, more specifically, a light truck, but may be an appropriate moving body such as a trolley, which can travel on land, or may be a ship or an aircraft. The driving source of the movable body 406a may be a suitable driving source such as gasoline, electric power, or a fuel cell.

The moving body 406a is a vehicle in which the seat 81 is disposed at the front in the traveling direction and the loading table 82 is disposed at the rear. The 4 wheels 83 as an example of the moving means are drivably disposed on the bottom surface side of the moving body 406 a. The user 402 can ride in the passenger seat 81.

The passenger seat 81 is provided with a display unit 65 for displaying the status of the mobile unit 406a and the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The display unit 65 may be a device having a screen, or may be realized by a mechanism for projecting information onto the front windshield. In addition to the display unit 65, a rear display unit 65a may be provided on the rear side of the vehicle body 810 covering the seat 81. The angle of the rear display portion 65a with respect to the vehicle body 810 can be changed laterally, and a user 402 working on the rear and lateral sides of the loading table 82 can observe the screen to acquire information.

A base station 404 having a shape in which a disk-like member is connected to the upper side of the round bar is protruded from the upper side of the seat 81 at the left end of the front portion of the loading table 82 of the movable body 406 a. The shape and position of the base station 404 are arbitrary. According to the configuration in which the base station 404 is located on the passenger seat 81 side of the loading table 82, the base station 404 is less likely to interfere with the take-off and landing of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 than the configuration in which the base station 404 is located behind the loading table 82.

The loading station 82 has a loading chamber 821 for storing a battery 502 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 and a medicine to be supplied to the medicine tank 104 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The loading compartment 821 is a region surrounded by the vehicle body 810 covering the passenger seat 81, the rear plate 822, the side plates 823, 823 of the 1 pair, and the upper panel 824. The rear plate 822 and the side plates 823 are each referred to as a "dam". Rails 825 are provided along the upper end of the side plate 823 to the vehicle body 810 on the rear surface side of the seat 81 at the respective ends of the upper portion of the rear plate 822. The upper panel 824 mounts the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, becomes a departure arrival area that is a departure arrival point 406 where the unmanned aerial vehicle can take off and land, and can slide back and forth along the track 825 in the traveling direction. The rails 825 are ribs protruding upward from the plane of the upper plate 824, and prevent the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 mounted on the upper plate 824 from slipping out from the left and right ends of the moving body 406 a. Further, a rib 8241 protruding toward the upper surface side to the same extent as the rail 825 is also formed at the rear of the upper plate 824.

A warning lamp 830 for displaying a state in which the unmanned aerial vehicle system 500 is in operation may be disposed on the upper portion of the vehicle body 810 and the rear side of the rear plate 822 in the traveling direction, that is, on the rear surface side of the vehicle body 810, the rear side of the vehicle body 810, or the side surface of the vehicle body 810. The warning lamp 830 is an example of a back display portion. The warning lamp 830 may be a display that distinguishes between the operation and the other operation by color matching, blinking, or the like, or may display characters, patterns, or the like. In addition, the warning lamp 830 on the upper portion of the vehicle body 810 can be extended above the vehicle body 810 to be displayed on both sides. With this configuration, even when the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is disposed on the loading table 82, the warning can be visually recognized from the rear. In addition, the warning can be visually recognized from the front in the traveling direction of the moving body 406 a. The warning lamp 830 provided at the upper portion of the vehicle body 810 is an example of an upper display portion. If the warning lamp 830 is not displayed, even if the mobile object 406a is stopped on the road and is waiting for the return of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, a person or a vehicle is brought into the vicinity, and therefore, it is necessary to provide a separate display lamp or the like for restricting the entrance at the entrance. In contrast, since the warning lamp 830 can be visually recognized from the front and the rear, a process of providing a separate display lamp or the like can be omitted.

The upper plate 824 can be slid manually or automatically by a rack and pinion mechanism or the like. When the upper plate 824 is slid rearward, articles can be stored in and taken out of the loading chamber 821 from above the loading table 82. In addition, in the state where the upper panel 824 slides rearward, the upper panel 824 is sufficiently separated from the vehicle body 810, and therefore the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can take off and land at the departure arrival point 406.

The upper panel 824 is provided with 4 leg receiving portions 826 (see fig. 27) capable of fixing the legs 107-1, 107-2, 107-3, and 107-4 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The leg receiving portions 826 are, for example, disk-shaped members each having a truncated cone shape with a concave upper surface, and are provided at 1 position corresponding to 4 legs 107-1, 107-2, 107-3, and 107-4 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The bottom of the truncated cone-shaped recess of the leg receiving portion 826 and the tips of the legs 107-1, 107-2, 107-3, 107-4 may be configured to fit into each other. When landing on the foot receiving portion 826, the feet 107-1, 107-2, 107-3, 107-4 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 slide along the conical surface of the foot receiving portion 826, and the tips of the feet 107-1, 107-2, 107-3, 107-4 are guided to the bottom of the truncated cone. The unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can be automatically or manually fixed to the foot receiving portion 826 by an appropriate mechanism, and even when the mobile body 406a carries the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to move, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can be safely transported without excessively vibrating or dropping. The mobile unit 406a can detect whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is fixed to the foot receiving portion 826 by the mounting state acquisition portion 322 described later.

A circular lamp 850 for displaying a reference of the landing position of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is disposed at the substantially central portion of the upper panel 824. The circumferential lamp 850 is formed of a group of luminous bodies arranged in a substantially circular shape, and the group of luminous bodies can blink individually. In the present embodiment, 1 circumferential lamp 850 is constituted by 4 large luminous bodies 850a arranged at about 90 degrees circumferentially and 2 small luminous bodies 850b arranged at equal intervals between the large luminous bodies 850 a. The circumferential lamp 850 displays the flying direction after the take-off of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 or the flying direction at the time of landing by lighting 1 or more of the light emitter groups 850a, 850 b. Furthermore, the circumferential lamp 850 may be formed of 1 ring-shaped luminous body which can be partially blinked.

Regarding the side plates 823, 1, the bottom side is connected to the loading table 82 by a hinge, enabling the side plates 823 to be tilted outward. Fig. 9 shows a state in which the side plate 823 on the left side in the traveling direction falls to the outside. When the side plate 823 is tilted outward, the stored object can be stored and taken out from the side of the moving body 406 a. The side plate 823 is fixed substantially parallel to the bottom surface of the loading chamber 821, and the side plate 823 can be used as a work table.

The 1 pair of rails 825 constitute a mode switching mechanism. The hinge connecting the side plate 823 and the loading table 82 may be included in the mode switching mechanism. The movable body 406a moves in a state where the upper plate 824 is disposed so as to cover the upper side of the loading chamber 821 and the side plate 823 is erected so as to cover the side surface of the loading chamber 821. When the movable body 406a is stationary, the upper plate 824 is switched to a state of sliding backward or a state of the side plate 823 falling down, and the user 402 can go deep into the loading chamber 821.

The unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can supplement the battery 502 while landing on the departure/arrival point 406. The replenishment of the battery 502 includes charging of the built-in battery 502 and exchange of the battery 502. The charging device in which the battery 502 is stored in the loading chamber 821 can charge the battery 502 stored in the loading chamber 821. Further, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 may include a mechanism of a super capacitor instead of the battery 502, and a charger for the super capacitor may be stored in the loading chamber 821. In this configuration, when the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is fixed to the foot receiving portion 826, the battery 502 mounted on the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can be rapidly charged via the foot of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100.

The unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can supplement the medicine stored in the medicine tank 104 while being landed at the departure/arrival point 406. The loading chamber 821 may store appropriate components such as a diluting and mixing tank for diluting and mixing the medicine, an agitation mechanism, and a pump and a hose for sucking the medicine from the diluting and mixing tank and injecting the medicine into the medicine tank 104. Further, a replenishing hose that can be connected to the inlet of the medicine tank 104 may be disposed so as to extend from the loading chamber 821 to the upper side of the upper plate 824.

On the upper surface of the upper plate 824, a waste liquid tank 840 and a waste liquid hole 841 for guiding the medicine discharged from the medicine tank 104 are formed. The waste liquid tanks 840 and the waste liquid holes 841 are each arranged in 2 numbers, and the waste liquid tanks 840 are located below the chemical nozzles 103 no matter which one of the left and right sides of the movable body 406a the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 lands. The waste liquid tank 840 is formed substantially straight along the longitudinal direction of the movable body 406a along the position of the chemical nozzle 103, and is a tank having a predetermined width, and is inclined only slightly toward the passenger seat 81 side. At the end of the waste liquid tank 840 on the passenger seat 81 side, waste liquid holes 841 penetrating the upper plate 824 and guiding the chemical liquid into the interior of the loading chamber 821 are formed, respectively. The waste liquid hole 841 communicates with a waste liquid tank 842 provided substantially directly below the waste liquid hole 841 in the loading chamber 821.

When the medicine is injected into the medicine tank 104, a gas release operation is performed to release the gas (mainly, air) filled in the medicine tank 104 to the outside. At this time, an operation of discharging the medicine from the discharge port of the medicine tank 104 is required. Further, after the operation of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is completed, an operation of discharging the medicine from the medicine tank 104 is required. According to the configuration in which the waste liquid tank 840 and the waste liquid hole 841 are formed in the upper plate 824, when the chemical injection and discharge to and from the chemical tank 104 are performed in a state in which the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is disposed on the upper plate 824, the waste liquid can be guided to the waste liquid tank 842, and the chemical injection and discharge can be performed safely.

Outline of functional blocks of mobile body and unmanned aerial vehicle

As shown in fig. 10, the moving body 406a includes the movement control unit 30 as a mechanism for moving the moving body 406a itself. The mobile unit 406a includes a mobile unit transmitting unit 31, an intervention operation unit 35, and an input unit 36, and is configured to acquire information related to the mobile unit 406a and transmit the information to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The position acquisition unit 311a, the orientation acquisition unit 311b, the angle acquisition unit 311c, and the operation state acquisition unit 323 included in the mobile body transmission unit 31 constitute a movement detection unit 310.

As shown in fig. 11, the mobile unit 406a includes a mobile unit receiving unit 60, a display unit 65, and a mobile unit control unit 66, and is configured to receive information related to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 from the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, appropriately determine the information based on the information, and notify the user 402 of the required information.

As shown in fig. 10, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 includes a flight control unit 21 that can autonomously control the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The unmanned aerial vehicle 100 further includes the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20 as a configuration for receiving information from the mobile unit 406 a. Further, as shown in fig. 11, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 includes the unmanned aerial vehicle transmitting unit 40 as a configuration for acquiring information related to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 and transmitting the information to the mobile unit 406 a.

Function block of moving body

As shown in fig. 10, the mobile unit transmitting unit 31 includes a landing information transmitting unit 311, a mobile unit state transmitting unit 32, and a resource information transmitting unit 33.

The landing information transmitting unit 311 is a functional unit that transmits information necessary for the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to land at the departure/arrival point 406 on the mobile object 406a to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The landing information transmitting unit 311 includes a position acquiring unit 311a, an orientation acquiring unit 311b, an angle acquiring unit 311c, and a surrounding environment acquiring unit 311d. The landing information transmitting unit 311 transmits the following information acquired by the position acquiring unit 311a, the orientation acquiring unit 311b, the angle acquiring unit 311c, and the surrounding environment acquiring unit 311d to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20.

The position acquisition unit 311a is a functional unit that acquires the position coordinates of the departure arrival point 406. The position coordinates are 3-dimensional coordinates. When the moving body 406a is stationary, the departure/arrival point 406 is the current position coordinate of the moving body 406 a. In the case where the moving body 406a moves, the departure arrival point 406 may be coordinates indicating the arrival scheduled position of the departure arrival point 406 when the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 arrives at a vicinity of the departure arrival point 406 in a given range.

The orientation acquisition unit 311b is a functional unit that acquires the orientation of the moving body 406 a. In detecting the orientation of the moving body 406a, the value of the geomagnetic sensor included in the moving body 406a may be referred to.

The angle acquisition unit 311c is a functional unit that acquires the roll angle and the pitch angle of the mobile body 406 a.

The position, orientation, and angle of the movable body 406a can be changed with time. The position acquisition unit 311a, the orientation acquisition unit 311b, the angle acquisition unit 311c, and an operation state acquisition unit 323 described later constitute a movement detection unit 310 that detects movement of the moving body 406 a. The movement detection unit 310 detects movement due to external disturbances such as an earthquake, slip on a climbing road, and collision of a vehicle, in addition to movement of the moving body 406a by the movement control unit 30, which is automatically or manually changed in position, based on the change with time of the position, orientation, and angle of the moving body 406 a. Based on the information acquired by the movement detection unit 310 and the information acquired by the movement control unit 30, it is possible to determine whether the moving body 406a is moving automatically or manually or moving by disorder. When the movement detection unit 310 detects the movement due to the disturbance, the display unit 65 may display the result. According to this configuration, safety can be further ensured as compared with a configuration in which only movement by the movement control unit 30 is detected.

The surrounding environment acquiring unit 311d is a functional unit that acquires information on the surrounding environment that may become an obstacle when the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 lands on the departure arrival point 406, and acquires, for example, the intensity and direction of wind, and the presence or absence of precipitation such as rain or snow. When the departure/arrival point 406 vibrates, the surrounding environment acquisition unit 311d acquires information thereof. The vibration of the departure/arrival point 406 may be an earthquake or a vibration generated near a road where the traffic volume is large. Vibration energy from the departure point 406 to the destination 406 is measured by a 6-axis gyro sensor provided in the mobile unit 406 a. Further, the surrounding environment acquiring unit 311d may acquire information of satellites, communication states, and geomagnetism, which are communicated by the RTK-GPS. The unmanned aerial vehicle 100 that received the information from the surrounding environment acquisition unit 311d determines whether or not to land based on the information on the surrounding environment.

Further, the surrounding environment acquiring unit 311d detects an obstacle existing around the mobile body 406a as one of the information related to the surrounding environment. The obstacle is, for example, a structure such as a house, a rail, or an electric wire, a living body such as a person or an animal, a moving body such as a vehicle, or the like, and a dangerous object that is bumped when the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 lands. The surrounding environment acquisition unit 311d includes, for example, a camera that uses visible light or infrared light, and detects an obstacle around the mobile body 406 a. In addition, detection of an obstacle may be performed using radar (radar)/lidar (order) instead of or in addition to a camera, and for example, a system for detecting an obstacle generally equipped in an automobile as an example of the mobile body 406a may be used. According to this configuration, information of an obstacle that is not detected by the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can be transmitted to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. Therefore, the risk of collision of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 against an obstacle can be further reduced.

The landing information transmitting unit 311 may determine whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can safely land based on at least any one of the information acquired by the position acquiring unit 311a, the orientation acquiring unit 311b, the angle acquiring unit 311c, and the surrounding environment acquiring unit 311d, and may transmit the determination result to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20. Further, this determination may be performed by the flight control section 21 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100.

The mobile body state transmitting unit 32 is a functional unit that transmits the state of the mobile body 406a to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20. The mobile object state transmitting unit 32 acquires information indicating whether or not the mobile object 406a is in a state capable of functioning as the departure destination 406, and transmits the information to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20. Functions of the departure/arrival point 406 include enabling the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to take off and land on the upper panel 824, and enabling the battery 502 and chemical liquid of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to be replenished.

The mobile body state transmitting unit 32 includes a form acquiring unit 321, a mounting state acquiring unit 322, an operating state acquiring unit 323, a work state acquiring unit 324, and a system state acquiring unit 325. The mobile body state transmitting unit 32 transmits the following information acquired by the form acquiring unit 321, the mounting state acquiring unit 322, the operating state acquiring unit 323, the work state acquiring unit 324, and the system state acquiring unit 325 to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20.

The form acquiring unit 321 is a functional unit that acquires the form of the moving body 406 a. The moving body 406a can be switched at least between a traveling mode when the moving body 406a moves and a departure-to-base mode when the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 takes off and lands the moving body 406a by the mode switching means. In the present embodiment, the operation table mode in which the side plate 823 falls can be switched. The form acquiring unit 321 acquires information on which form among the travel form, the departure-to-base form, and the work-table form the mobile unit 406a is. The form acquiring unit 321 may acquire the form of the moving body 406a based on a driving state of an appropriate configuration for driving the form switching mechanism, such as a motor for driving the rack-and-pinion mechanism of the rail 825. The form acquiring unit 321 may be configured to mechanically detect the form of the moving body 406a, such as a touch switch.

In the workbench state, the probability that the user 402 exists near the mobile object 406a is high, and therefore the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 cannot take off and land. Therefore, the mobile body transmitting unit 31 transmits a signal for prohibiting the take-off and landing of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 or a signal for permitting the take-off and landing to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20, thereby securing the safety of the user 402.

The form of the mobile object 406a acquired by the form acquisition unit 321 is transferred to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20 via the mobile object transmitting unit 31. The flight control unit 21 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 may be configured to: the position at which the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is landed is determined based on the form of the mobile unit 406 a. When the mobile object 406a is in the departure/arrival base mode, the flight control unit 21 determines to land at the departure/arrival point 406 of the mobile object 406 a. When the mobile object 406a is in the traveling mode or the work table mode, the flight control unit 21 determines that landing at the departure arrival point 406 is impossible. In this case, the unmanned aerial vehicle transmitting unit 40 may transmit a command to the mobile unit 406a requesting the mobile unit to change to the departure-destination mode. In addition, when the mobile object 406a cannot be deformed to the departure-arrival-base mode, it may be determined that the mobile object is landed at a point different from the departure arrival point 406. For example, it may be determined to land on the ground corresponding to the point where the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 takes off. This is because the landing possibility is high because the takeoff site has an actual experience of taking off. Further, it may be determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is landed at a predetermined place in a farm where the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 performs work. This is because the land in the farm is easier to grasp and less likely to interfere with passers-by and vehicles than the land outside the farm, and therefore the probability of landing safely is high.

The loading state acquiring unit 322 is a functional unit that acquires information on whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is loaded at the departure/arrival point 406. The mounting state acquiring unit 322 can acquire information on whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is fixed to the departure point 406 and the mobile object 406a is in a state of being safely movable. The mounting state acquisition unit 322 may determine permission or non-permission of the movement of the mobile body 406a based on whether the mobile body 406a is in a state of being safely movable, and may transmit the determination result to the user 402 via the display unit 65. Further, according to the configuration in which the mounting state acquisition unit 322 is provided in the mobile body 406a, the mounting state can be grasped even when the power is not supplied to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. When the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is placed on the mobile unit 406a and transported to the vicinity of the farm before the start of the work on the farm, the power supply of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 may be disconnected at the time of the placement. Therefore, the mounting state acquisition unit 322 is preferably provided in the moving body 406 a.

The operation state acquisition unit 323 acquires operation information indicating whether the moving body 406a is moving or in a movable state. The operation state acquisition unit 323 can acquire a more detailed operation state of the moving body 406a, and can distinguish whether the vehicle is moving or is in an idle state in which the vehicle is stationary but can move. The operation state acquisition unit 323 may acquire more detailed operation states in a state where the movable body 406a is not movable, and may acquire information indicating that the operation is in the stage mode or the deformation is in the mode by referring to the information from the mode acquisition unit 321 in addition to the information about the stop.

The work state acquisition unit 324 is a functional unit that acquires the state of the battery 502 and the chemical liquid that are replenished to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The work state acquisition unit 324 transmits battery supplementary information indicating the status of the supplementary work to the battery 502 to the unmanned aerial vehicle reception unit 20. The battery supplementary information includes information of whether or not the mobile body 406a is currently charging the battery 502 in the loading compartment 821, and information of which one of the state in which the battery 502 is prepared in the loading compartment 821 of the mobile body 406a, the state in which the battery 502 is being exchanged on the mobile body 406a, and the state in which the exchange is completed. The work state acquisition unit 324 transmits medicine replenishment information indicating the status of the replenishment work of the medicine to the unmanned aerial vehicle reception unit 20. The medicine replenishment information includes information indicating whether the medicine is prepared in the loading chamber 821 or the medicine is replenished or completed in the moving body 406 a. The medicine supplementary information includes information indicating the progress of dilution and mixing of the medicine performed in or near the loading chamber 821.

The system state acquisition unit 325 is a functional unit that acquires information on a state (hereinafter, also referred to as "system state") of a system of the mobile unit 406 a. The information of the system state includes information of the presence or absence of an abnormality of the mobile unit 406a and the presence or absence of an abnormality of the base station 404. In the present description, the "abnormality" of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, the base station 404, and the mobile unit 406a includes an internal failure in addition to the abnormal state of the external environment.

The abnormality of the mobile body 406a includes the following information: based on the content of the anomaly that occurred, the drone 100 should return immediately. This is because there are also the following cases: in the case where the degree of abnormality of the moving body 406a is slight or an abnormality of a type that does not greatly affect the operation of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 does not need to be returned. Regarding an abnormality that requires the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to return, consider a case where the fuel of the mobile body 406a becomes a given amount or less. The information of the system state includes the remaining amount of drive energy capacity of the drive source that drives the moving body 406 a. When the remaining amount of fuel driving the movable body 406a is equal to or less than a predetermined amount, the system state acquisition unit 325 can notify the situation. The driving source of the movable body 406a may be a suitable driving source such as gasoline, electric power, or a fuel cell.

The information indicating that the abnormality has occurred in the base station 404 may be transmitted from the mobile unit transmitting unit 31 to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20, or may be transmitted from the base station 404 to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20 without going through the mobile unit transmitting unit 31.

The resource information transmitting unit 33 is a functional unit that transmits resource information indicating the amount of resources prepared in the mobile unit 406a that can supplement the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20. The resource information includes the number of charged batteries 502 and the amount of medicine. In addition, the resource information may be a charging remaining power of the device that charges the battery 502. In the case where the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is configured to be driven by a fuel cell, the resource information may be the amount of fuel gas, such as hydrogen, that can be stored in the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The amount of the resource prepared in the mobile unit 406a may be acquired by the user 402 through a manual input or may be acquired automatically. As an example of the configuration for automatically acquiring, a configuration may be employed in which the weight of the loading chamber 821 in a predetermined range is measured in order to acquire the medicine amount. In addition, in order to obtain the number of charged batteries 502, a configuration may be employed in which the capacity of the batteries 502 is measured in addition to the configuration in which the weight of the loading chamber 821 in a predetermined range is measured.

The intervention operation unit 35 is a functional unit that transmits a command for flight control of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20. In normal operation, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 autonomously operates by the flight control unit 21 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 itself, but when an abnormality or the like occurs in the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, a command from the mobile unit 406a is interposed, and the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can be operated. The input unit 36 of the mobile unit 406a can also transmit a command from the user 402 to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100.

In particular, the intervention operation unit 35 can transmit a command to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, which indicates that the user 402 performs a retraction operation for suspending the operation of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The backoff action includes, in addition to the action of returning to the departure arrival point 406, a normal landing action, an air stop such as hovering, and an "emergency return" in which the shortest route immediately moves to a predetermined return point.

The backoff action may be "normal return" in which the vehicle moves to a predetermined return point along an optimized route. The optimized route is, for example, a route calculated by referring to a route on which the medicine is spread before receiving the normal return instruction. Such as departure arrival location 406. The unmanned aerial vehicle 100 may travel to a predetermined return point while dispensing the chemical via a route in which the chemical has not been dispensed during normal return. The retraction operation further includes an "emergency stop" in which all the rotary wings are stopped and the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is dropped downward on the spot.

When the movement detection unit 310 detects the movement of the mobile object 406a, the intervention operation unit 35 may transmit an instruction to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to instruct the evacuation operation. The backoff action in this case is specifically hovering. When the moving body 406a moves, it is unclear whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can continue the safe operation, and therefore, first, the operation of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is stopped to ensure the safety. At the same time, the mobile body control unit 66 notifies a warning via the display unit 65, and requests the mobile body 406a to return to the original position. In order to return the movable body 406a to the original position, the display unit 65 may display the guide path.

The intervention operation unit 35 may generate a travel route of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 that links a point where the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is located or an entry/exit point where the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 exits from the farm and the departure arrival point 406.

Furthermore, the intervention operation unit 35 can transmit signals for performing a 3-dimensional position coordinate, speed, acceleration, and heading division operation of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The intervention operation unit 35 may start control of the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 when abnormality information from the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is received.

The input unit 36 is a functional unit that receives an input from the user 402. The input unit 36 can input, for example, a command to start the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 and a command to return the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to the departure arrival point 406. The input unit 36 may be a tablet device configured by the same mechanism as the display unit 65.

As shown in fig. 11, the moving body 406a further includes a moving body receiving unit 60, a display unit 65, and a moving body control unit 66.

The mobile body receiving unit 60 is a functional unit that receives information from the unmanned aerial vehicle transmitting unit 40. The information received by the mobile receiving unit 60 will be described later together with a description of the functional blocks of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100.

The display unit 65 is a functional unit for appropriately displaying information to be transmitted to the user 402.

The mobile body control unit 66 is a functional unit that determines the operation of the mobile body 406a based on the information received by the mobile body receiving unit 60. The operation of the mobile unit 406a includes an operation of determining whether to notify the user 402 and changing the form of the mobile unit 406 a. The movement of the moving body 406a includes a movement of the moving body 406a by the movement control unit 30. Details of the operation of the mobile body control unit 66 will be described later together with information received by the mobile body receiving unit 60 and a description of functional blocks of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100.

Function block of unmanned aerial vehicle

As shown in fig. 11, the unmanned aerial vehicle transmitting unit 40 includes a body information transmitting unit 41, a prediction information transmitting unit 42, an abnormality detecting unit 43, and a request command transmitting unit 44. The information from the unmanned aerial vehicle transmitting unit 40 includes information that can distinguish whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is in flight. The information transmitted from the unmanned aerial vehicle transmitting unit 40 may be transmitted periodically or may be transmitted as a trigger at the start of flight, at the start of landing, or at a predetermined time before the start of landing.

The body information transmitting unit 41 is a functional unit that transmits information on the current situation of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to the mobile receiving unit 60. The body information transmitting unit 41 includes a position acquiring unit 411, an orientation acquiring unit 412, a job information acquiring unit 413, a communication environment acquiring unit 414, a resource information acquiring unit 415, a travel route acquiring unit 416, and a mounting state acquiring unit 417.

The position acquisition unit 411 is a functional unit that acquires 3-dimensional position coordinates of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The 3-dimensional position coordinates are acquired based on information of the RTK-GPS. According to this configuration, the current position of the unmanned plane 100 can be displayed on the display unit 65. Further, when the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 lands at the departure/arrival point 406, the 3-dimensional coordinates of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 may be acquired and stored as landable coordinates in the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 itself and the mobile object 406a. The unmanned aerial vehicle 100 may be configured to determine the location where landing is performed based on the 3-dimensional coordinates of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 at the time of landing. According to this configuration, the position coordinates of the departure/arrival point 406 acquired for landing can be acquired by the configuration of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, and therefore, the configuration of mounting the RTK-GPS on the mobile unit 406a is unnecessary, and the configuration can be simple and inexpensive. The mobile body control unit 66 can guide the mobile body 406a based on the coordinates at the time of landing of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 so that the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can return. The guidance of the moving body 406a may be performed by superimposing the location of the target coordinates on a map or an actual landscape, or by notifying the user 402 of instructions executed in the reverse order of the operation history based on the operation history of the steering wheel and the tire. Further, the configuration in which the guided user 402 moves the moving body 406a can be configured at a lower cost than the configuration in which the moving body 406a itself moves by automated driving. In order to automatically drive the mobile object 406a, for example, a position measuring device having higher accuracy than a conventional GPS (GNSS) mounted in an automobile is required to be mounted on the mobile object 406a, and therefore, the cost increases.

The orientation acquisition unit 412 is a functional unit that acquires the orientation of the nose of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The heading of the head is obtained by referring to the value of a geomagnetic sensor mounted on the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 or the value of a GPS compass.

The job information acquisition unit 413 is a functional unit that acquires information on a job status performed by the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The work state of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 includes a state in takeoff, landing, and hovering standby. In addition, the state in which the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is entering the farm and the state in flight outside the farm are included. Further, the state in which the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is performing a work such as medicine dispensing or monitoring, and the state in which the work is not performed are included. The information related to the work state can be appropriately displayed by the display unit 65. With this configuration, the user 402 can know the state of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 in the automatic driving in substantially real time, and can feel a sense of security to the user 402.

When it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is in flight based on the information acquired by the work information acquisition unit 413, the mobile body control unit 66 restricts the movement of the mobile body 406a by the movement control unit 30. The limitation of movement may be either prohibition of movement or limitation to permit movement only within a given range. When movement is prohibited, the P range may be prohibited from being released, or the hand brake may be prohibited from being released. Since the prohibition release mechanism for the P range and the hand brake is often mounted on an existing automobile, it is not necessary to prepare a separate device even when the existing automobile is changed to construct the mobile object according to the present invention. That is, the mobile body according to the present invention can be realized at low cost. When it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is in flight, the display unit 65 displays a different display from the case where the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is not in flight. The display unit 65 may always display the meaning of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 being in flight during the period in which the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight. When an instruction to move the movable body 406a is input from the user 402 during the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, the display unit 65 may notify a warning.

The mobile body control unit 66 operates or limits the operation of the mode switching mechanism, thereby holding the mobile body 406a in a mode in which the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can take off and land. The mobile body control unit 66 may mechanically lock the mode switching mechanism or may restrict the electrical connection without switching the mode. The mobile body control unit 66 may display a display indicating that the switching of the mode is impossible on the display unit 65. The display may be displayed at all times during the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, or may be displayed when the user 402 inputs an operation to switch the mode.

The communication environment acquisition unit 414 is a functional unit that acquires communication with a satellite and communication with other components of the mobile unit 406a and other unmanned aerial vehicle systems 500.

The resource information acquisition unit 415 is a functional unit that acquires the remaining amount of the battery 502 (see fig. 7) and the remaining amount of the medicine tank 104, which are the amounts of resources loaded in the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. By acquiring the remaining amount of the battery 502 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 or the mobile object 406a can be used to predict the flying range in which the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can fly based on the remaining amount. The mobile body control unit 66 may define a movable range of the mobile body 406a based on the movable range of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, and restrict the mobile body 406a from being movable outside the movable range. With this configuration, the movable body 406a can be limited to the range in which the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can return, and safe return of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can be ensured. The resource information acquiring unit 415 may determine whether or not the mobile object 406a is present within the flying range of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. When the mobile object 406a is moved and the mobile object 406a is not present in the flying range of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, the flight control unit 21 can land the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 at a point where the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 takes off. In addition, in this case, the flight control section 21 may cause the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to hover or land at a given location. The predetermined point is a point in time when the mobile object 406a does not deviate from the flying range, and may be a point where the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is located, a point of exit from a farm, or an arbitrary point near the mobile object 406a. According to the configuration of landing at the exit point from the farm, the user 402 can easily access the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 without entering the farm, as compared with the configuration of landing at a point or the like where the work in the farm is interrupted.

The travel route acquisition unit 416 is a functional unit that acquires information on a travel route of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 on a farm, which is determined in advance. The unmanned aerial vehicle 100 flies in the farm based on the information on the travel route, and performs a predetermined task such as monitoring and medicine scattering. The travel route acquisition unit 416 may acquire information on a departure arrival route connecting an entry/exit point of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 into the farm with the departure arrival point 406, and transmit the information to the mobile object 406a via the unmanned aerial vehicle transmission unit 40.

The loading state acquiring unit 417 is a functional unit that acquires information on whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is loaded on the mobile unit 406a. The loading state acquiring unit 417 can acquire loading information indicating whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is fixed to the departure/arrival point 406 of the mobile object 406a, and the mobile object 406a is in a state of being safely movable. When the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is securely fixed, the mounting state acquisition unit 417 may transmit a signal indicating that the mobile object 406a is permitted to move to the mobile object 406a via the unmanned aerial vehicle transmission unit 40. In addition, when the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is not fixed, the mounting state acquisition unit 417 may transmit a signal indicating that the movement of the mobile object 406a is not permitted to the mobile object 406a via the unmanned aerial vehicle transmission unit 40.

The prediction information transmitting unit 42 is a functional unit that predicts information on the replenishment of resources by the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 returning to the departure arrival point 406 and transmits the information to the mobile receiving unit 60. The prediction information transmitting unit 42 includes a return time acquisition unit 421, a return number acquisition unit 422, and a required replenishment amount acquisition unit 423.

The return time acquisition unit 421 is a functional unit that calculates a time required from the start of a job to the point of time when the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 arrives at the job break point at which the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 returns to the departure point 406 for resource replenishment when the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is to complete the job on a predetermined travel planned route in a target area such as a farm. The return time acquisition unit 421 can acquire a predetermined time at which the operation is interrupted and a predetermined time at which the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 returns to the departure arrival point 406, with reference to the required time and the current time.

The return number acquisition unit 422 is a functional unit that acquires a predetermined number of returns to the departure arrival point 406 for the purpose of supplementing the resources of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100.

The required replenishment quantity acquisition unit 423 is a functional unit that acquires the quantity of resources required for replenishment by the unmanned aerial vehicle 100. The amount of resources required is, for example, the number of charged batteries and the amount of medicine. The number of the charged batteries can be calculated in consideration of the length of the planned travel route, the actual value of the past power consumption, and the like. The dose can be calculated based on the total area of the farm and the concentration of the spread determined according to the type of the drug.

The abnormality detection unit 43 is a functional unit that detects an abnormality occurring in the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 and transmits the abnormality to the mobile unit receiving unit 60 via the unmanned aerial vehicle transmitting unit 40. When an abnormality occurs in the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 returns to the departure arrival point 406. Upon receiving an abnormality of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100, the mobile body control unit 66 determines whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is in a form that can be returned to the returnable position based on the information from the abnormality detection unit 43, and changes the position or form as necessary. The mobile body control unit 66 notifies the user 402 of the change of the position or the form via the display unit 65. Further, the mobile body control unit 66 notifies the user 402 of the distance from the mobile body 406a being equal to or greater than a predetermined distance through the display unit 65.

The request command transmitting unit 44 is a functional unit that transmits a request command related to the state of the mobile unit 406a to the mobile unit receiving unit 60. In particular, when the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is scheduled to return, the request command transmitting unit 44 may transmit a request to the mobile receiving unit 60 to bring the position, orientation, and form of the mobile 406a into a state where landing is possible. The mobile body control unit 66 may automatically change to the landable state based on the request, or may guide the user 402 to the landable state by appropriately notifying the user 402. When the mobile object 406a is in a state where it can land, the request command transmitting unit 44 may transmit a command to prohibit the movement of the mobile object 406a and a command to prohibit the change of the form of the mobile object 406 a.

Flow chart of landing of unmanned aerial vehicle at departure/arrival point on mobile body

As shown in fig. 12, first, the mobile object receiving unit 60 receives the planned landing coordinates, the heading of the aircraft nose, and the planned landing time of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 from the body information transmitting unit 41 and the predicted information transmitting unit 42 (S11).

The mobile body control unit 66 determines whether or not the position, orientation, and angle of the mobile body 406a are within the range that the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can return (S12). If the return is not possible, the mobile body control unit 66 drives the mobile control unit 30 to move the mobile body 406a to the position, orientation, and angle at which the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can return (S13). Alternatively, the mobile body control unit 66 notifies the user 402 of the movement request of the mobile body 406a via the display unit 65, and returns to step S12.

When the position, orientation, and angle of the movable body 406a are within the returnable ranges, the display unit 65 notifies the user 402 that the movable body 406a is not moved (S14). The position, orientation, and angle of the mobile object 406a are transmitted to the unmanned plane 100.

Next, the mobile body control unit 66 determines whether or not the communication state with the satellite or another component on the unmanned aerial vehicle system 500 acquired by the surrounding environment acquisition unit 311d is appropriate (S15). In the case where the communication state is not appropriate, standby is performed for a given time (S16). The user 402 is notified of the standby state due to the communication state. Further, it may be configured to notify that the standby time is scheduled. In addition, instead of waiting, the user 402 may be notified of a request to move the position of the movable body 406 a. The movement of the mobile body 406a is useful when the mobile body 406a is disposed in the vicinity of a structure that causes radio wave interference or when the position of a satellite observed from the mobile body 406a is erroneously recognized when communicating with the satellite.

Next, the mobile body control unit 66 determines whether the mobile body 406a acquired by the form acquisition unit 321 is in a form that the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can return (S17). If the form of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is not a form that can be returned, the mobile body control unit 66 changes the form of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 (S18). The mobile body control unit 66 may notify the user 402 of the change in the form of the mobile body 406a via the display unit 65.

Next, the mobile body control unit 66 determines whether or not the operation state of the mobile body 406a is a state in which the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can return (S19). If the operation state that the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can return is not possible, the mobile body control unit 66 changes the operation state (S20). The mobile body control unit 66 may notify the user 402 of the change of the operation state of the mobile body 406a via the display unit 65.

Since the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is scheduled to return, the display unit 65 notifies the user 402 that it is not close to the loading table 82 (S21). In this case, the constitution may be as follows: the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is permitted to land, based on the information acquired by the surrounding environment acquiring unit 311d, after confirming that no person or obstacle is present around the mobile object 406 a. Upon receiving the landing permission, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 lands at the departure arrival point 406 (S22). When a person or an obstacle is present around the mobile unit 406a, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can hover at a predetermined place and wait for the person or the obstacle to disappear. The hovering location may be within the farm, an exit point from the farm, or any location near the mobile object 406 a. In addition, in the event that the departure arrival location 406 cannot be landed even if waiting for a hover for a given time, the landing may be performed at the hover location or after movement. According to the configuration of landing at the exit point from the farm, the user 402 can easily access the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 without entering the farm, as compared with the configuration of landing at a point or the like where the work in the farm is interrupted.

Flow chart for managing resources owned by a mobile body to be supplemented to a unmanned aerial vehicle

As shown in fig. 13, the mobile object receiving unit 60 receives information such as the required number of batteries 502, the required amount of the medicine, the scheduled time for return, and the number of returns of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 from the prediction information transmitting unit 42 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 (S31). The mobile body control unit 66 refers to the resource amount acquired by the resource information transmitting unit 33, and determines whether or not the number of batteries 502 and the medicine amount of the mobile body 406a are sufficient (S32). When the number of batteries 502 and the amount of medicine in the mobile unit 406a are insufficient, the mobile unit control unit 66 notifies the user 402 of the need for replenishment and the required replenishment amount (S33). The mobile body control unit 66 may notify the user 402 by distinguishing the amount required until the next return from the total amount required until the completion of the job on the farm.

Flow chart in case of an anomaly in the unmanned aerial vehicle

As shown in fig. 14, first, the abnormality detection unit 43 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 detects an abnormality (S41). Next, the unmanned aerial vehicle transmitting unit 40 transmits information indicating that the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 returns the content to the mobile object 406a to the mobile object receiving unit 60 (S42).

The flight control unit 21 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 determines whether or not the control by the flight control unit 21 itself is possible to return (S43), and if so, proceeds to step S11 of fig. 12 based on the return by the flight control unit 21.

When it is determined that the control by the flight control unit 21 itself cannot be returned, the mobile body control unit 66 determines: based on the intervention operation performed by the intervention operation unit 35 of the moving body 406a, whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 can return (S45). If the operation can be returned, the operation is switched to the intervention operation from the moving body 406a (S46), and the process proceeds to step 11 in fig. 12. If it is determined in step S45 that the operation cannot be returned even by the intervention operation, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 lands on the spot or performs an emergency stop such as stopping the operation of the rotor and landing on the spot (S47).

Flow chart in case of abnormality of moving body

As shown in fig. 15, first, the system state acquisition unit 325 of the mobile unit 406a detects whether an abnormality that requires the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to return has occurred in the mobile unit 406a (S51). Then, the mobile body transmitting unit 31 transmits a command to return the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 to the unmanned aerial vehicle receiving unit 20 (S52).

Mobile body (2)

A second embodiment of a mobile body according to the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 16, focusing on a portion different from the previously described configuration. Hereinafter, the same reference numerals are given to the same components as those of the other embodiments. In each embodiment, the grooves 840, the waste liquid holes 841, the waste liquid tanks 842 in the loading chambers 821, and the like are omitted, but the same configuration as in the first embodiment may be added.

The movable body 406b of the second embodiment is different from the movable body of the first embodiment in that the movable body is disposed along a second upper surface plate 824b of the upper surface plate 824 so as to cover the inside of the loading chamber 821. If top plate 824 slides to the rear, top plate 824b of fig. 2 will be exposed. According to this configuration, even if the upper plate 824 slides, the upper side of the interior of the loading chamber 821 is not opened, and the loaded objects can be protected. The lower end of the side barrier 823b of the movable body 406b is connected to the end of the loading chamber 821 by a hinge, and the barrier 823b can be laid down and fixed substantially parallel to the bottom surface of the loading chamber 821. With this configuration, not only the objects to be loaded in the loading chamber 821 but also the baffle 823b can be used as a work table.

The second upper plate 824b may be 1 plate or may be formed of a plurality of plates. In the present embodiment, the second upper plate 824b is formed of 2 flat plates having substantially the same shape, and is connected to the support bars disposed in the traveling direction at substantially the center in the width direction of the loading chamber 821. The 2 plates and the support bar are fixed by, for example, a hinge, and the plates are rotated from the side of the movable body 406c, respectively, so that the objects to be loaded in the loading chamber 821 can be accessed. In addition, the second upper plate 824b may be configured as follows instead of being configured to be rotatable by a hinge: slidably coupled to the rail 825, and is slid to the rear in the traveling direction, so that the inside of the loading chamber 821 is opened upward.

Mobile body (3)

A third embodiment of the mobile body according to the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 17, focusing on a portion different from the previously described configuration. The upper end of a side barrier 823c of a movable body 406c of the third embodiment is connected to a rail 825c by a hinge, and the upper end of the barrier 823c is fixed substantially parallel to the upper surface plate 824 on substantially the same plane, which is different from the movable body of the first embodiment. According to this configuration, the touchdown surface can be expanded by the baffle 823 c. In the present embodiment, a second upper plate 824b is disposed.

Mobile body (4)

A fourth embodiment of the mobile body according to the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 18, focusing on a portion different from the previously described configuration. The movable body 406d according to the fourth embodiment has a nested structure in which the sliding loading chamber 821d is accommodated in the loading chamber 821, and the lower end of the baffle 823d is connected to the sliding loading chamber 821d by a hinge, so that the baffle 823d and the sliding loading chamber 821d can be pulled out laterally from below the upper plate 824. According to this configuration, the load can be pulled out together with the slide mount chamber 821d, and thus workability is improved. In the present embodiment, a second upper plate 824b is disposed.

Mobile body (5)

A fifth embodiment of a mobile body according to the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 19, focusing on a portion different from the previously described configuration. The side barrier 823e of the movable body 406e of the fifth embodiment is connected to the end of the loading table 82 by a hinge, and the sliding loading chamber 821e is pulled out from the loading chamber 821. According to this configuration, when the slide mount chamber 821e is pulled out, the slide mount chamber 821e is supported by the baffle 823e, and therefore, the slide mount chamber 821e can be pulled out more stably. In the present embodiment, a second upper plate 824b is disposed.

Mobile body (6)

The movable body 406f of the sixth embodiment shown in fig. 20 is a shape obtained by removing the second upper plate 824b of the movable body 406d of the fourth embodiment.

Mobile body (7)

The movable body 406g of the seventh embodiment shown in fig. 21 is a shape obtained by removing the second upper plate 824b of the movable body 406e of the fifth embodiment.

Mobile body (8)

The movable body 406h of the eighth embodiment shown in fig. 22 is provided with the barrier 823c of the third embodiment, and has a shape in which the slide mount chamber 821e is pulled out from below the barrier 823 c. In the present embodiment, a second upper plate 824b is disposed.

Mobile body (9)

The movable body 406i according to the ninth embodiment shown in fig. 23 is provided with a barrier 823c according to the third embodiment (see fig. 17), and further connected to an extension member 823i extending toward the rear end of the barrier 823c in the traveling direction. The extension member 823i is a flat plate having substantially the same thickness as the baffle plate 823c, and is coupled to the baffle plate 823c at the rear end of the baffle plate 823c in the traveling direction by a rotation mechanism such as a hinge or a sliding mechanism that slides the extension member 823i along the plane of the baffle plate 823 c. The extension member 823i can be fixed substantially parallel to the upper plate 824 on substantially the same plane. The rear end of the extension member 823i is disposed at the rear end of the movable body 406i while being fixed to the substantially same plane as the upper plate 824. At the rear end of the extension member 823i, a rib similar to the rear end of the upper plate 824 is formed, preventing the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 from falling from the loading table 82. According to this configuration, the landable surface can be expanded by the barrier 823c and the extension member 823i.

The extension member 823i may be coupled to the side surface of the upper plate 824 by a sliding mechanism that slides the rotation mechanism or the extension member 823i along the plane of the upper plate 824.

In fig. 23, 1 pair of the barrier plates 823c and the extension members 823i are arranged substantially symmetrically in the left-right direction of the upper plate 824, but either the left-right direction may be arranged on the side of the upper plate 824. In this configuration, either one of the slide mount chambers 821d and 821e is pulled out from the mount chamber 821.

Mobile body (10)

The movable body 406j according to the tenth embodiment shown in fig. 24 is configured as follows: without rails 825, upper plate 824 does not slide relative to loading chamber 821.

In all of the above embodiments, it is arbitrary whether the above features are provided in bilateral symmetry or only one of the left and right sides. A mobile body having a structure described in different embodiments on the left and right sides is also within the technical scope of the present invention.

In the present description, the agricultural chemical dispensing unmanned aerial vehicle is described as an example, but the technical idea of the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can be applied to all unmanned aerial vehicles for other purposes such as shooting and monitoring. In particular to an autonomous machine. The movable body is not limited to a vehicle, and may be appropriately configured.

(technically significant effects of the present invention)

In the unmanned aerial vehicle system, the unmanned aerial vehicle and the movable body which can be used for loading the unmanned aerial vehicle to move and can be used for taking off and landing of the unmanned aerial vehicle act cooperatively, and high safety can be maintained even under the condition that the unmanned aerial vehicle flies autonomously.

Claims

1. In the unmanned aerial vehicle system, an unmanned aerial vehicle and a mobile body act cooperatively, the mobile body can load the unmanned aerial vehicle to move and can take off and land for the unmanned aerial vehicle,

The unmanned aerial vehicle is provided with:

a flight control unit that controls the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle; and

a drone transmitting unit configured to transmit information that can distinguish whether or not the drone is in flight,

the mobile body receives a driving operation of a user, and is provided with:

the departure arrival area is used for loading the unmanned aerial vehicle and is used as a departure arrival place for the unmanned aerial vehicle to take off and land;

a movement control unit that causes the unmanned aerial vehicle to be mounted in the departure/arrival area and causes the mobile body to move together with the unmanned aerial vehicle;

a mobile body receiving unit that receives information from the unmanned aerial vehicle; and

a mobile body control unit configured to determine whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight based on information from the unmanned aerial vehicle,

the mobile body control unit notifies a warning to the user when it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight and an instruction to move the mobile body is input from the user while the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight.

2. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 1, wherein,

the moving body control section permits only movement of the moving body within a given range and prohibits movement of the moving body outside the given range.

3. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 1 or 2, wherein,

the unmanned aerial vehicle system further includes a display unit that displays information based on a determination result by the mobile body control unit,

the mobile body control unit makes a display of the display unit mounted on the mobile body different between when it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight and when it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle is not in flight.

4. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 1 or 2, wherein,

the mobile body further comprises a form switching mechanism capable of switching at least a form in which the mobile body can move and a form in which the unmanned aerial vehicle can take off and land on the mobile body,

the form switching mechanism slides an upper panel as a departure/arrival point of the unmanned aerial vehicle relative to a loading table of the movable body,

the landing-off mode is a state that the upper panel slides to the rear,

the moving body control unit can switch and hold the form of the moving body,

when the mobile body receiving unit receives information indicating that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight, the mobile body is kept in the form capable of taking off and landing.

5. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 4, wherein,

the moving body further includes a form acquiring unit that can acquire a form of the moving body.

6. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 5, wherein,

the mobile unit further includes a mobile unit transmitting unit capable of transmitting the form of the mobile unit to the unmanned aerial vehicle, and the unmanned aerial vehicle determines a position at which the unmanned aerial vehicle is landed based on the form of the mobile unit.

7. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 1 or 2, wherein,

the unmanned aerial vehicle system displays the position where the unmanned aerial vehicle can take off and land on the display part of the mobile body for the user, so that the mobile body is guided to the position where the unmanned aerial vehicle can take off and land.

8. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 1 or 2, wherein,

the mobile body control unit notifies the user of instructions executed in reverse order of the operation history based on the operation history of the mobile body, and guides the mobile body to a position where the unmanned aerial vehicle can take off and land.

9. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 1, wherein,

the flight control unit determines whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle can land at the departure arrival point based on the information of the mobile body received by the unmanned aerial vehicle.

10. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 9, wherein,

the mobile body has a surrounding environment acquisition unit that acquires information on a surrounding environment of the departure/arrival point, and the mobile body is capable of transmitting the information on the surrounding environment to the unmanned aerial vehicle,

the unmanned aerial vehicle determines whether or not landing at the departure arrival point is possible based on information related to the surrounding environment.

11. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 10, wherein,

the flight control unit acquires the position of the mobile body, and determines whether or not landing at the departure arrival point is possible based on the position of the mobile body.

12. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of any of claims 9 to 11, wherein,

when it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle cannot land at the departure arrival point, the flight control unit causes the unmanned aerial vehicle to land on a ground corresponding to a point at which the unmanned aerial vehicle takes off.

13. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of any of claims 9 to 11, wherein,

the flight control unit suspends the return of the unmanned aerial vehicle and hovers the unmanned aerial vehicle at a given location when it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle cannot land at the departure arrival location.

14. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 1, wherein,

the moving body further includes:

a movement detection unit that detects whether or not the mobile body has moved during the flight of the unmanned plane; and

an intervention operation unit configured to send an instruction to the unmanned aerial vehicle to perform a backoff operation,

when the movement detection unit detects movement of the mobile body, the intervention operation unit transmits an instruction to the unmanned aerial vehicle to instruct the unmanned aerial vehicle to perform a retraction operation.

15. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 14, wherein,

the intervention operation unit generates a travel route of the unmanned aerial vehicle from a predetermined position in a target area where the unmanned aerial vehicle works to the departure arrival point, and transmits the travel route to the unmanned aerial vehicle.

16. The unmanned aerial vehicle system of claim 1 or 2, wherein,

the mobile body obtains the remaining amount of the battery loaded on the unmanned aerial vehicle, predicts the flying range of the unmanned aerial vehicle based on the remaining amount of the battery,

the mobile body control unit limits the movement range of the mobile body based on the flying range.

17. In the unmanned aerial vehicle system, an unmanned aerial vehicle and a mobile body act cooperatively, the mobile body can load the unmanned aerial vehicle to move and can take off and land the unmanned aerial vehicle,

The mobile body receives a driving operation of a user, the mobile body has a departure arrival area for loading the unmanned aerial vehicle and serving as a departure arrival point where the unmanned aerial vehicle takes off and lands,

the control method of the unmanned aerial vehicle system comprises the following steps:

controlling the flight of the unmanned aerial vehicle;

a step of transmitting information capable of distinguishing whether the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight;

loading the unmanned aerial vehicle in the departure arrival area, and moving the mobile body together with the unmanned aerial vehicle;

a step of receiving information from the unmanned aerial vehicle;

a step of determining whether the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight based on information from the unmanned aerial vehicle;

a step of displaying information based on a result of the determination; and

and a step of notifying a warning to the user when it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight and an instruction to move the mobile body is input from the user while the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight.

18. A computer-readable storage medium storing a control program for an unmanned aerial vehicle system in which an unmanned aerial vehicle and a mobile body are operated in coordination, the mobile body being capable of loading the unmanned aerial vehicle for movement and being capable of landing and taking off the unmanned aerial vehicle,

the control program of the unmanned aerial vehicle system causes a computer to execute the following commands:

a command to control the flight of the drone;

transmitting a command capable of distinguishing information whether the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight;

a command to load the unmanned aerial vehicle in the departure arrival area and to move the mobile body together with the unmanned aerial vehicle;

receiving a command of information from the unmanned aerial vehicle;

determining whether the drone is in-flight for a command based on information from the drone;

a command to display information based on a result of the determination; and

when it is determined that the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight and an instruction to move the mobile body is input from the user while the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight, a warning command is notified to the user.

19. A movable body can be loaded with an unmanned aerial vehicle to move and can be used for the unmanned aerial vehicle to take off and land,

the mobile body receives a driving operation of a user, and is provided with:

a movement control unit that moves the mobile body together with the unmanned aerial vehicle;

a mobile body receiving unit that receives information from the unmanned aerial vehicle;

a mobile body control unit configured to determine whether or not the unmanned aerial vehicle is in flight based on information from the unmanned aerial vehicle; and

a display unit for displaying information based on the determination result of the mobile body control unit,

20. An unmanned aerial vehicle capable of being mounted on a mobile body and moving together with the mobile body,

the unmanned aerial vehicle is provided with:

the mobile body receives a driving operation of a user, and is provided with: